University of Oregon geologist Douglas Toomey points to the map to show where in the Pacific Ocean his team has been investigating volcanic plumbing and the formation of hydrothermal vents on the ocean floor.

The northern East Pacific Rise near 9ºN is an Integrated Study Site of the NSF-funded RIDGE 2000 program. The East Pacific Rise is a fast-spreading ridge characterized by rapid creation of oceanic crust and intense seafloor volcanic and hydrothermal activity.

Perspective view of East Pacific Rise and the seismic velocity structure of the underlying mantle. Surprisingly, regions of magma storage in the mantle (shown as orange and red colors) are in many places not centered beneath the plate plate boundary.

Vestimentiferan tubeworms Riftia pachyptila occur near deep sea hydrothermal vents found along the East Pacific Rise. Sites of intense hydrothermal activity, and their related ecosystems, rely upon upwelling magma from Earth's mantle for their energy.